Emergency alerts via the Emergency Alert System (EAS) are initiated from an emergency operations center. A problem with initiating an EAS alert via an emergency operation center is that a delay is introduced between the time of awareness of an emergency event, notifying the emergency operations center, and provision of the EAS alert by the emergency operations center. This delay can be especially problematic if the emergency necessitates immediate evacuation or immediate shelter, such as detonation of a dirty bomb on a college campus or an industrial accident that releases toxic chemicals. This problem of delay may be lessened if an EAS alert may be initiated from the mobile device of the first responder at the scene of the emergency.